Americans plan parties for many reasons. As in other cultures, many Americans attend parties for weddings and religious or national holidays. But some parties are especially American. For example, a group of neighbors may gather on their street to eat food, play music and visit with one another. This is called a block party. A woman might invite a group of women to a party called a baby shower for a friend who is about to give birth. Guests bring presents for the new baby.
Americans also attend tailgate parties. A tailgate is the back end of a truck or other vehicle that opens down. The tailgate parties are a big part of sports culture in the United States. Friends bring food and drink to a sports event. They eat together in the parking area of the sports stadium.
Birthday parties are also very popular. Many parents organize a party for their child around a theme. Birthday parties usually include gifts and a birthday cake with candles. In many parts of the United States, cupcakes have become a popular replacement for cakes.
Birthday parties can be low cost or very costly. Some parents take their children’s birthday parties very seriously, even when the child is too young to fully understand the celebration.
One group of parents started a website called Birthdays Without Pressure. They decided that some parents were under too much social pressure to plan costly parties for their children. The group sees this movement as an example of America’s culture of “too much stuff”. The group’s website gives suggestions on how to keep birthday celebrations simple, meaningful and fun without spending a lot of money. Their advice may be very helpful during this period of economic recession（萧条）.. What can be the best title for the passage?
| A．Reasons for parties |
| B．Birthdays without pressure |
| C．American parties |
| D．Different parties in the world |
. How many kinds of parties does the passage mention?
| A．5. | B．6. |
| C．7. | D．8. |
. Eating together in the parking area of the sports stadium belongs to _________parties.
| A．block | B．baby shower |
| C．sports | D．tailgate |
. The purpose of Birthdays Without Pressure is to advise people to _________.
| A．relieve people’s pressure |
| B．have meaningful birthday parties with low cost |
| C．make birthday parties meaningful and costly |
| D．spread America’s culture |
.Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Block party is especially American. |
| B．Some parties in America are the same as in other countries. |
| C．There’s a party for the mother before her new baby is born. |
| D．Birthday parties are the most popular in America. |
Sports are the base of my life, next to my mother who raised me when my dad left us．I have been into sports since I was six years old．I have known many coaches and heard hundreds of their tips, but they usually focused on drills to develop my skills and reach the next level of play.
When I was in Senior Two, I met the new school basketball coach, Brian Pawloski．I thought I was certain to be selected for the school team since I had been in it the year before．I showed up to the tryouts and put out about 90% effort since I thought I’d make it with no problem．That was a big mistake.
Brian Pawloski is the hardest working coach I have ever met．He didn’t expect 100% effort, he expected 200% effort．One example: he once made us do 40 suicide drills for the 40 lay ups (投篮) we missed in a game．Some think this is crazy, but it isn’t．After this conditioning practice, as we were getting a cup of cold water to drink, I said, “coach, that was the best practice I ever had.” I was completely sincere．This man was and is the person who influenced me most at my high school．He expects us to be excellent not just on the court but in the classroom．If I am not working on basketball, I am reading a book that he thinks will help us better understand life’s challenges, including Wooden, Coach, and The Screwtape Letters．
In the first two years I slacked off, not putting forth my full potential．Now, unlike the coaches of my youth, this man was interested in how he did off the court．He always made sure I kept up with my studies and was able to be trusted．I can honestly say that no other coach has given me so much advice on how to succeed in basketball, but more importantly, in life．My school is lucky to have such a great person to teach, coach and influence their students．I will always remember my high school basketball days as one of the hardest times I have ever worked in my life not only in basketball but in my growth as an individual．Different from other coaches, Coach Brian ________．
| A．concentrated on skill training |
| B．trained the team to the edge of death |
| C．expected the team to do well in their studies |
| D．asked the team to do more reading than training |
The underlined phrase “slacked off” in the last paragraph probably means ________.
| A．paid no attention |
| B．showed no interest |
| C．had less passion |
| D．made less effort |
In the author’s eye, Coach Brian is ________.
| A．strict and helpful |
| B．hardworking and honest |
| C．skilled and cruel |
| D．professional and serious |
What’s on Your Pet’s Mind? In 1977, Irene Pepperberg of Harvard University began studying what was on another creature’s mind by talking to it．Her first experiments began with Alex．Alex was a one year old African grey parrot and Irene taught him to produce the sounds of the English language．“I thought if he learned to communicate, I could ask him questions about how he sees the world.”
At the time, most scientists didn’t believe animals had any thoughts．They thought animals were more like robots but didn’t have the ability to think or feel．Of course, if you own a pet you probably disagree．But it is the job of a scientist to prove this and nowadays more scientists accept that animals can think for themselves．
“That’s why I started my studies with Alex,” Irene said, “Some people actually called me crazy for trying this.”
Nowadays, we have more and more evidence that animals have all sorts of mental abilities．Sheep can recognize faces．Chimpanzees (黑猩猩) use a variety of tools and even use weapons to hunt．And Alex the parrot became a very good talker.
Thirty years after the Alex studies began．Irene was still giving him English lessons up until his recent death．For example, if Alex was hungry he could say “want grape”．Alex could count to six and was learning the sounds for seven and eight．“He has to hear the words over and over before he can correctly say them.” Irene said, after pronouncing “seven” for Alex a few times in a row．Alex could also tell the difference between colors, shapes, sizes, and materials (e.g．wood and metal)．Before he finally died, Alex managed to say “seven”.
Another famous pet that proved some animals have greater mental skills was a dog called Rico．He appeared on a German TV game show in 2011．Rico knew the names of 200 different toys and easily learned the names of new ones．When Rico became famous, many other dog owners wanted to show how clever their pets were．Another dog called Betsy could understand 300 words.
One theory for dogs’ ability to learn a language is that they have ben close companions to humans for many centuries and so their ability to understand us is constantly evolving (进化)．While animals can’t do what humans do yet, some scientists believe that examples like Alex and Rico prove that evolution develops intelligence, as well as physical appearance.Irene wanted to find out __________.
| A．what a parrot thinks |
| B．why a parrot can speak |
| C．how parrots make sounds |
| D．if parrots speak English |
Alex learnt new words by __________.
| A．singing them |
| B．reading them |
| C．writing them |
| D．rehearing them |
The two dogs mentioned in the article could _______.
| A．understand some words |
| B．recognize strange voices |
| C．copy human gestures |
| D．tell different colors |
The article concludes that ___________.
| A．our pets understand what we say |
| B．dogs may speak to humans one day |
| C．humans are related to chimpanzees |
| D．mental ability can evolve in animals |
I've always felt a bit sad for weekend fathers, who are divorced and must maintain a bond with their children through visits on the weekend．Not having the opportunity for a lot of quality time, they go in for quantity giving lots of gifts and taking the children on non stop outings．
But now I can understand．I'm a weekend mom．My child, Henry, is a dog．
Henry just returned to his father, Jack, after a happy stay with me．For ten days, I fed him the best food, canceled plans to stay home with him and let him sleep on the bed every night．
Jack and I broke up a year ago．But neither of us wanted to part with Henry, so we share him．Not surprisingly, Henry is a willing participant in our contest for his love．
Jack doesn't let Henry sleep on his bed, so that's where I can always gain big points．I feed Henry higher quality food．I am always replacing his expensive “thingy" ,a cotton knot he likes chewing on．It' s his favorite toy, and the only one he has is at my house．Score another one for me．
Jack now has a girlfriend, Lucy．At first she was afraid of dogs, which secretly delighted me．But that Henry, just trying to be polite（the way I taught him to be）,won her over．
If truth be told, as time passes, there has been a slight change in Henry' s behavior toward me．The worst was one day when Jack dropped him off for a two week stay．Henry and I were in the backyard playing as Jack was driving off．When he heard Jack's truck, he ran after it for two blocks until Jack had to stop and bring him back．
That hurt, especially since I had friends over at the time．In a rare conciliatory （安抚的） mood, Jack said to me, "You know, I' m his best friend, but you'll always be his mom．"
Whatever it takes, I plan to make sure it stays that way．At the writer's home, Henry________．
| A．does a lot of running |
| B．enjoys high quality food |
| C．has many expensive toys |
| D．is not allowed to sleep on her bed |
The writer feels hurt because________．
| A．Jack has got a girlfriend |
| B．Lucy doesn't like Henry at all |
| C．Jack doesn't treat Henry as well as before |
| D．Henry' s attitude to her has changed slightly |
This article is mainly about________．
| A．the tips on keeping dogs |
| B．the writer' s happy life with a dog |
| C．the writer' s efforts to win a dog's love |
| D．the relationship between the writer and Jack |
The writer wrote the passage in a/an_________way．
| A．humorous | B．serous | C．angry | D．painful |
阅读下面短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项。
Sunshine Sports Centre
One of the most modem sports centers in town, the Sunshine Sports Centre is not just a sports club but much more!
Facilities
With a swimming pool for adults and teens, and a smaller one for children, our centre has something for all the members of the family．Parents can relax while children play in the water．For anybody who is interested in competitive sports, our volleyball, tennis and basketball courts are the ideal place to work off stress．
Whether you just want to keep in shape, lose some weight or build your strength, there's the gym with its super modem equipment and three personal trainers to look after you and answer all your questions．They can also give you general advice about healthy eating and dieting．
Lessons
It doesn't matter if you' re five or eighty five, there's something for you at the Sunshine Sports Centre! We offer personal training in all sports if you want it, but there are also group lessons for all sports if you prefer teamwork．
Kids and teenagers
Take advantage of our special offer for younger members．For members between five and sixteen years old, there are special lessons in water polo, competitive swimming and diving．There are many classes for all levels of swimmers, with a lifeguard on duty from 9:00 am when the pool opens until it closes at 7:00 pm．
Social events
Sunshine Sports Centre is not only for sport! You can enjoy a delicious meal at our restaurant or have a milkshake with your friends on the balcony overlooking the swimming pool and the courts．In addition, there are lovely gardens where families or friends can have a picnic! To celebrate a birthday, there is no better place than the Sunshine Sports Centre．
So, come on Sign up for Sunshine Sports Centre today!In Sunshine Sports Centre __________
| A．people can have birthday parties |
| B．lifeguards are on duty 24 hours a day |
| C．children are not allowed to swim alone |
| D．special lessons in diving are offered to adults |
People can ask personal trainers for advice when they _________
| A．learn to swim |
| B．sign up |
| C．build strength |
| D．play basketball |
The main purpose of the passage is to _________
| A．explain the rules of the sports centre |
| B．attract people to the sports centre |
| C．persuade people to play sports |
| D．show the benefits of sports |
School Counseling（咨询）
In our grandparents' time, it was unthinkable．In our parents' time, it was unusual and nobody spoke openly about counseling．These days, more and more schools are asking for this service and it is considered a necessity for most．Why is it? What has changed in the last fifty years to have made counseling at schools so important?
“One reason is that we expect schools to do more to protect their pupils than we did in the past," says school counselor, Mike Hudson．“ Also, our society doesn't work as well as it should．Many parents are either under pressure of work or face the economic problems of unemployment, while children are under more and more pressure to do well at school．Many pupils feel they are pushed to their limits by their parents and teachers．"
Most school children face some kind of relationship problem at some stage with family members, teachers or other pupils, so．it helps to have somebody to talk to．
From the pupil' s point of view, it is easier to talk to a counselor in confidence rather than a family member or teacher．This solution is less embarrassing to pupils, who are not forced to face the person that they had problems with in the first place．They can calmly talk things through without arguments．
School counselors advise not only students but also their teachers and parents, and offer other services as well, such as deciding learning disabilities or assisting parents and guardians to make the correct decisions about their children' s education．
Counselors can help students with problems ranging from the most serious, like a death in the family, to what an adult would consider really trivial, like an argument with a friend．
In a society that is becoming more and more stressful, this service is providing children with a supportive way to express their fear and worries．Why is school counseling becoming important?
| A．Pupils are not well protected in school． |
| B．Parents can't help their children in learning． |
| C．Parents and pupils are under too much pressure． |
| D．The relationship between parents and schools is worse． |
According to the passage, school counselors________．
| A．bear high pressure themselves |
| B．are the guarantee of school success |
| C．have more responsibilities than teachers |
| D．are more likely to be accepted when pupils have problems |
The underlined word "trivial" in Para．5 probably means________．
| A．unimportant | B．puzzling | C．difficult | D．urgent |
What does the passage mainly talk about?
| A．The development of school counseling． |
| B．The reasons for school counseling’s popularity． |
| C．The advantages and disadvantages of school counseling． |
| D．The comparison of the past and present school counseling． |